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President Donald Trump has signed an executive order imposing sanctions on the International Criminal Court (ICC) in response to its investigations into Israel, a key U.S. ally. Neither the United States nor Israel recognizes or holds membership in the ICC, which recently issued an arrest warrant for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over alleged war crimes related to Israel’s military actions in Gaza following the October 2023 Hamas attack. The Israeli response has resulted in the deaths of tens of thousands of Palestinians, including children. Trump’s order, signed on Thursday, accuses the ICC of engaging in “illegitimate and baseless actions” against the United States and Israel, criticizing the court for issuing what it calls “unfounded arrest warrants” for Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant. The document asserts that the ICC has no jurisdiction over either country and warns that its actions set a “dangerous precedent.” The move coincided with Netanyahu’s visit to Washington, where he met with Trump at the White House on Tuesday and later held discussions with U.S. lawmakers on Capitol Hill. According to the order, the U.S. will impose “tangible and significant consequences” on those responsible for the ICC’s actions. These measures could include freezing assets, blocking property, and restricting entry into the United States for ICC officials, employees, and their relatives. Human rights advocates have strongly criticized the sanctions, warning that such measures could undermine global efforts to hold perpetrators of atrocities accountable. They argue that the move not only restricts access to justice for victims of human rights violations but also contradicts U.S. interests in other international conflict zones where the ICC is active. Trump blames 'obsolete' air traffic control for deadly crash “Victims of human rights abuses worldwide rely on the ICC when they have no other recourse,” said Charlie Hogle, a staff attorney with the American Civil Liberties Union’s National Security Project. He added that Trump’s executive order makes it more difficult for them to seek justice and poses serious First Amendment concerns by penalizing those assisting the ICC in investigating war crimes. Sarah Yager, Washington director for Human Rights Watch, also criticized the decision, stating, “You can disagree with the court’s approach, but this is beyond acceptable.” The U.S. has historically maintained a complicated relationship with the ICC. While it helped negotiate the Rome Statute that established the court, the U.S. voted against its adoption in 1998. President Bill Clinton signed the statute in 2000 but did not seek Senate ratification. Under President George W. Bush, the U.S. withdrew its signature and pressured other countries to sign agreements preventing them from turning over Americans to the ICC. Trump had previously sanctioned former ICC chief prosecutor Fatou Bensouda in 2020 for investigating war crimes in Afghanistan involving U.S. forces. President Joe Biden later lifted those sanctions, allowing limited cooperation with the court, particularly after ICC prosecutor Karim Khan charged Russian President Vladimir Putin with war crimes in Ukraine in 2023. UN chief rejects 'any form of ethnic cleansing' in Gaza Senator Lindsey Graham, a longtime ICC critic, had previously facilitated dialogue between Khan and Republican lawmakers. However, he now feels betrayed and has vowed to take action against the court and any country enforcing Netanyahu’s arrest warrant. “This is a rogue court, a kangaroo court,” Graham said, warning that the legal reasoning used against Israel could eventually target the U.S. Biden has also denounced the arrest warrants, and his national security adviser, Mike Waltz, has accused the ICC of antisemitic bias. Some European nations, including the Netherlands, have pushed back against potential U.S. sanctions, advocating for continued support of the court’s mission. Potential U.S. sanctions could severely impact the ICC’s ability to function, making it difficult for investigators to travel and compromising key evidence-handling technologies. The court recently suffered a cyberattack that disrupted access to critical files for weeks, adding to its operational challenges.

Forced leaves began in Washington and worldwide Friday for most employees of the US Agency for International Development, as federal workers associations turned to the courts to try to roll back Trump administration orders that have dismantled most of the agency and US- funded aid programs around the world. Under a Trump administration plan, the agency is to be left with fewer than 300 workers out of thousands. Two current USAID employees and one former senior USAID official told The Associated Press of the administration's plan, presented to remaining senior officials of the agency Thursday. They spoke on condition of anonymity due to a Trump administration order barring USAID staffers from talking to anyone outside their agency. The agency is being slashed back from more than 8,000 direct hires and contractors. They, along with an unknown number of 5,000 locally hired employees abroad, would run the few life-saving programs that the administration says it intends to keep going for now. It was not immediately clear whether the reduction to 300 would be permanent or temporary, potentially allowing more workers to return after what the Trump administration says is a review of which aid and development programs it wants to resume. Trump's Gaza plan shocks the world but finds support in Israel The administration this week gave almost all USAID staffers posted overseas 30 days, starting Friday, to return to the US, with the government paying for their travel and moving costs. Workers who choose to stay longer, unless they received a specific hardship waiver, might have to cover their own expenses, a notice on the USAID website said late Thursday. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said during a trip to the Dominican Republic on Thursday that the US government will continue providing foreign aid. “But it is going to be foreign aid that makes sense and is aligned with our national interest,” he told reporters. The Trump administration and billionaire ally Elon Musk, who is running a budget-cutting Department of Government Efficiency, have targeted USAID hardest so far in an unprecedented challenge of the federal government and many of its programs. Since President Donald Trump’s Jan. 20 inauguration, a sweeping funding freeze has shut most of the agency’s programs worldwide, and almost all of its workers have been placed on administrative leave or furloughed. Musk and Trump have spoken of eliminating USAID as an independent agency and moving surviving programs under the State Department. Democratic lawmakers and others call the move illegal without congressional approval. The same argument was made by the American Foreign Service Association and the American Federation of Government Employees in their lawsuit, which asks the federal court in Washington to compel the reopening of USAID’s buildings, return its staffers to work and restore funding. Government officials “failed to acknowledge the catastrophic consequences of their actions, both as they pertain to American workers, the lives of millions around the world, and to US national interests," the suit says.

A search is currently underway in western Alaska for a plane carrying 10 people that went missing Thursday afternoon while flying over Norton Sound, south of the Arctic Circle, reports AP. The Bering Air Caravan, which was en route from Unalakleet to Nome with nine passengers and a pilot, lost contact with authorities shortly after takeoff. Four killed in US military-contracted plane crash in Philippines The Alaska Department of Public Safety is working to determine the aircraft’s last known coordinates. Unalakleet is a small community of around 690 people located 150 miles (240 km) southeast of Nome and 395 miles (640 km) northwest of Anchorage. This incident is the third significant aviation tragedy in the United States in just eight days. On January 29, a commercial jetliner collided with an Army helicopter near Washington, D.C., killing 67 people. Two days later, on January 31, a medical transportation plane crashed in Philadelphia, resulting in six deaths. The Cessna Caravan departed Unalakleet at 2:37 p.m., and officials lost communication with the plane less than an hour later, according to David Olson, Bering Air's director of operations. The aircraft was approximately 12 miles (19 km) offshore at the time, the U.S. Coast Guard reported. Bering Air, which operates flights to 32 villages in western Alaska, is actively gathering information and coordinating search and rescue efforts. Airplanes are often the primary mode of transportation in rural Alaska, especially during winter months. Ground crews from the Nome Volunteer Fire Department are conducting a search along the coastline from Nome to Topkok, though weather conditions are limiting air searches. Officials have warned the public not to form their own search parties due to the dangerous weather. Plane with 6 aboard crashes in Philadelphia, setting homes ablaze A U.S. Coast Guard aircraft is expected to search the last known location of the missing plane. The National Guard and state troopers are also assisting with the search. The temperature in Unalakleet was about 17°F (-8.3°C) at the time of takeoff, with light snow and fog in the area. The names of those on board the aircraft have not been released. Nome, a historic Gold Rush town located just south of the Arctic Circle, is famous as the endpoint of the 1,000-mile (1,610 km) Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race.

US President Donald Trump on Thursday attributed last week’s fatal collision between a passenger jet and an Army helicopter to the outdated computer system used by U.S. air traffic controllers, calling it “obsolete,” and pledged to replace it, reports AP. During an event, Trump stated that "a lot of mistakes happened" on January 29 when an American Airlines flight departing from Wichita, Kansas, collided with an Army helicopter near Washington, D.C. The crash, which occurred as the plane was nearing its landing at Ronald Reagan National Airport, resulted in the deaths of all 67 individuals on both aircraft. Trump withdraws US from UN human rights body, cuts Palestinian refugee funding Immediately after the incident, Trump had blamed diversity hiring programmes for the crash. However, on Thursday, he placed the blame on the air traffic control system. “It’s amazing that it happened,” Trump remarked during a speech at the National Prayer Breakfast at the U.S. Capitol. “I think that’s going to be used for good. We’ll all sit down and develop a great computerized system for our control towers. A brand new one, not pieced together, obsolete.” Trump pointed out that the U.S. had spent billions attempting to “renovate an old, broken system” instead of investing in a completely new one. He also mentioned that when flying in his private jet, he uses a system from another country because his pilot considers the U.S. system outdated. Federal officials have long raised concerns about the air traffic control system being overburdened and understaffed, particularly after a number of near-miss incidents at airports. The staffing shortages are attributed to factors such as uncompetitive wages, long shifts, intensive training, and mandatory retirements. Trump argued that had the U.S. possessed a newer system, warnings would have been triggered when the Black Hawk helicopter, engaged in a training exercise, reached the same altitude as the passenger plane. However, a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) report stated that the controller did receive an alert about the plane and helicopter converging while they were still over a mile apart. The controller inquired if the helicopter pilot had visual contact with the plane and directed the helicopter to pass behind it. The helicopter pilot confirmed having the plane in sight. The investigation has focused on confirming the altitudes of both the plane and the helicopter. The flight recorder from the jet showed its altitude as 325 feet (99 meters), with a margin of error of 25 feet (7.6 meters). Data from the air traffic control system indicated the helicopter was above its 200-foot (61-meter) ceiling, with the controller's screen showing the helicopter at 300 feet (91 meters), though this figure was rounded to the nearest 100 feet (30 meters). To obtain more precise details, investigators need to examine the wreckage of the submerged Black Hawk, which is expected to be recovered later this week. Trump administration to withdraw most USAID workers worldwide This crash marked the deadliest U.S. aviation accident since November 12, 2001, when a jet crashed into a New York City neighbourhood just after takeoff, killing all 260 passengers and five people on the ground.

The Trump administration’s decision to close the U.S. Agency for International Development has drawn widespread criticism from congressional Democrats and raised questions and concern about the influence billionaire ally Elon Musk wields over the federal government. The United States is by far the world’s largest source of foreign assistance, although several European countries allocate a much bigger share of their budgets to aid. USAID funds projects in some 120 countries aimed at fighting epidemics, educating children, providing clean water and supporting other areas of development. Here is a look at USAID’s impact around the world: Protecting the Amazon rainforest and fighting cocaine in South America USAID has been critical in providing humanitarian assistance in Colombia, conservation efforts in the Brazilian Amazon and coca eradication in Peru. Recent USAID money has also supported emergency humanitarian aid to more than 2.8 million Venezuelans who fled economic crisis. In 2024 alone, the agency transferred some $45 million to the U.N. World Food Program, mostly to assist Venezuelans. In Brazil, USAID’s largest initiative is the Partnership for the Conservation of Amazon Biodiversity, which focuses on conservation and improving livelihoods for Indigenous peoples and other rainforest communities. Over in Peru, part of USAID’s $135 million funding in 2024 was dedicated to financing cocaine-production alternatives such as coffee and cacao. The humanitarian agency has been seeking to curb production of the drug since the early 1980s. Disease response, girls’ education and free school lunches in Africa Last year, the U.S. gave the sub-Saharan region more than $6.5 billion in humanitarian assistance. But since Trump’s announcement, HIV patients in Africa found locked doors at clinics funded by an acclaimed U.S. program that helped rein in the global AIDS epidemic. Known as one of the world’s most successful foreign aid program, the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, or PEPFAR, has been credited with saving more than 25 million lives, largely in Africa. “The world is baffled,” said Aaron Motsoaledi, the health minister of South Africa, the country with the most people living with HIV, after the U.S. freeze on aid. Motsoaledi says the U.S. funds nearly 20% of the $2.3 billion needed each year to run South Africa’s HIV/AIDS program through PEPFAR, and now the biggest response to a single disease in history is under threat. The effects of halting U.S. aid are also rippling across sub-Saharan Africa. In Ghana, the Chemonics International development group said it's pulling logistics for programs in maternal and child health, malaria response and HIV. Trump administration to withdraw most USAID workers worldwide Education programs have been halted in Mali, a conflict-battered West African nation where USAID has become the country’s main humanitarian partner after others left following a 2021 coup. The U.S. aid agency supports about 40% of all humanitarian operations, according to Elmhedi Ag Wakina, president of the Platform of National Organizations Active in Humanitarian Affairs in Mali. In civil-war-torn Sudan, which is grappling with cholera, malaria and measles, the aid freeze means 600,000 people will be at risk of catching and spreading those diseases, said an official who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly on the matter. Hospitals in war-ravaged Syria Doctors of the World Turkey says it has been forced to lay off 300 staff and shutter 12 field hospitals it runs across northern Syria, a region devastated by years of war and a huge 2023 earthquake. Hakan Bilgin, the organization’s president, said it relies on USAID for 60% of its funding and has had to cut its daily consultations from 5,000 to 500. “As a medical organization providing life-saving services, you’re basically saying, ’Close all the clinics, stop all your doctors, and you’re not providing services to women, children, and the elderly," Bilgin said. Bilgin said the impact on northern Syria, where millions rely on outside medical aid, could be catastrophic. “Imagine that aid disappearing — not just for us, but for many other organizations that depended on USAID,” he said in the group’s Istanbul office, surrounded by half-unpacked boxes and worried colleagues. “The real impact is bigger than we can measure right now.” Support for democracy and media in Myanmar The freeze of foreign assistance from USAID include $39 million for rights, democracy, and media in Myanmar, whose military seized power from the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi in 2021, a human rights group said Thursday. USAID website goes offline in Trump administration's 2-week-old freeze on foreign aid worldwide The group Human Rights Myanmar said the frozen funds “are vital for organizations challenging military rule and promoting democracy, which advance U.S. interests by upholding American values and countering China’s authoritarian influence.” Myanmar’s military government is the most repressive in Southeast Asia, clamping down on free media, imprisoning thousands of nonviolent critics and political rivals and carrying out a brutal war against pro-democracy resistance forces, heedless of civilian casualties. The freeze includes “$8 million for seven projects defending human rights; $30 million for nine initiatives promoting democracy; and $1 million for two programs supporting independent media,” it said. Human Rights Myanmar, whose members are rights workers forced to act covertly inside the Southeast Asian nation, said that the freeze also “suspended $22 million for humanitarian aid, $36 million for agriculture, $22 million for health and $30 million for education.” The civil war in Myanmar has caused a severe humanitarian crisis, especially affecting more than 3 million displaced people, according to U.N. estimates. A busy shelter left without a doctor in Mexico In the southern Mexican city of Villahermosa, the Peace Oasis of the Holy Spirit Amparito shelter is one of several beneficiaries of U.S. humanitarian assistance to those fleeing persecution, crisis or violence. However, under the funding freeze, the charitable organization that runs the shelter had to cut its only doctor as well as a social worker and child psychologist. The shelter has since appealed to the Mexican government for alternate funding for programs managed by the United Nations to pay for flights and bus rides to Mexico’s border with Guatemala for migrants who want to return home. “The crisis is only going to worsen,” the shelter said in a statement. “The most affected will be the population we serve.” Wartime help in Ukraine U.S. funding in Ukraine has helped to pay for fuel for evacuation vehicles, salaries for aid workers, legal and psychological support, and tickets to help evacuees reach safer locations. That includes the cost of using a concert hall in eastern Ukraine as a temporary center for civilians fleeing the relentless Russian bombardment. That shelter is now in peril because 60% of the costs — equivalent of $7,000 a month to run — were being covered by the U.S. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says his government expects $300 million to $400 million in aid to be cut. Most of that was for the energy sector that has been targeted by Russia.

President Donald Trump announced Tuesday that the United States will withdraw from the top UN human rights body and will not resume funding for the UN agency helping Palestinian refugees. The US left the Geneva-based Human Rights Council last year, and it stopped funding the agency assisting Palestinian refugees, known as UNRWA, after Israel accused it of harbouring Hamas militants who participated in the surprise October 7, 2023, attacks in southern Israel, which UNRWA denies. Trump’s announcement came on the day he met with visiting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, whose country has long accused both the rights body and UNRWA of bias against Israel and antisemitism. Trump's executive orders also call for a review of American involvement in the Paris-based UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, known as UNESCO, and a review of US funding for the United Nations in light of “the wild disparities in levels of funding among different countries.” The United States, with the world's largest economy, pays 22% of the UN's regular operating budget, with China the second-largest contributor. “I’ve always felt that the UN has tremendous potential,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office. “It’s not living up to that potential right now. ... They've got to get their act together.” He said the UN needs “to be fair to countries that deserve fairness,” adding that there are some countries, which he didn't name, that are “outliers, that are very bad and they're being almost preferred.” Before Trump's announcement, UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric reiterated the Human Rights Council's importance and UNRWA's work in delivering “critical services to Palestinians.” Trump also pulled the US out of the Human Rights Council in June 2018. His ambassador to the UN at the time, Nikki Haley, accused the council of “chronic bias against Israel” and pointed to what she said were human rights abusers among its members. Americans could feel 'some pain' from trade war: Trump President Joe Biden renewed support for the Human Rights Council, and the US won a seat on the 47-nation body in October 2021. But the Biden administration announced in late September that the United States would not seek a second consecutive term. Trump's order on Tuesday has little concrete effect because the United States is already not a council member, said council spokesperson Pascal Sim. But like all other UN member countries, the US automatically has informal observer status and will still have a seat in the council’s ornate round chamber at the U.N. complex in Geneva. UNRWA was established by the UN General Assembly in 1949 to provide assistance for Palestinians who fled or were expelled from their homes before and during the 1948 Arab-Israeli war that followed Israel’s establishment, as well as for their descendants. It provides aid, education, health care and other services to some 2.5 million Palestinians in Gaza, the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem, as well as 3 million more in Syria, Jordan and Lebanon. Before the October 7 Hamas attacks, UNRWA ran schools for Gaza's 650,000 children as well as health facilities, and helped deliver humanitarian aid. It has continued to provide health care and been key to the delivery of food and other aid to Palestinians during the war. The first Trump administration suspended funding to UNRWA in 2018, but Biden restored it. The U.S. had been the biggest donor to the agency, providing it with $343 million in 2022 and $422 million in 2023. Trump’s 2nd week in office marked by chaos, political shifts, controversial orders For years, Israel has accused UNRWA of anti-Israeli bias in its education materials, which the agency denies. Israel alleged that 19 of UNRWA’s 13,000 staff in Gaza participated in the Hamas attacks. They were terminated pending a UN investigation, which found nine may have been involved. In response, 18 governments froze funding to the agency, but all have since restored support except the United States. Legislation ratifying the US decision halted any American funding to UNRWA until March 2025, and Trump’s action Tuesday means it will not be restored.

U.S. President Donald Trump has invited Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to visit the White House next week, a White House official confirmed. The invitation came just hours after a U.S. military plane departed with deported migrants bound for India. During a conversation on January 27, Trump and Modi discussed immigration, with the U.S. president emphasizing the need for India to purchase more American security equipment and ensure fair bilateral trade. As a key U.S. partner in countering China’s influence, India aims to strengthen trade ties with Washington while seeking easier access to skilled worker visas. India’s budget focuses on tax cuts for middle class, agriculture Besides, India hopes to avoid potential tariffs, which Trump has previously threatened due to what he calls India's high import duties on American goods. The United States is India's largest trading partner, with bilateral trade exceeding $118 billion in 2023/24. India recorded a $32 billion trade surplus during this period.

Former US President Joe Biden has signed with a Los Angeles talent agency, marking a move in shaping his career after the presidency. This signing reconnects him with Creative Artists Agency (CAA), which represented him from 2017 to 2020, reports BBC. Biden’s semiconductor law to boost US chip output at high cost, says report "President Biden is one of America's most respected and influential voices in both national and global matters," said Richard Lovett, co-chair of CAA, in a statement. He added, "His lifelong dedication to public service embodies unity, optimism, dignity, and possibility. We are deeply honored to partner with him once again." The agency also has connections with former President Barack Obama and former First Lady Michelle Obama, it said. At 82, Biden has been relatively quiet about his future plans following his five-decade public service career. However, when leaving the White House in January, he reassured supporters, saying, "We're leaving office, we're not leaving the fight." Biden declines to enforce TikTok ban, leaves decision to Trump Only two weeks after departing office, there is no clear sign of a new book or project on the horizon. During his previous tenure with the agency, he released his memoir, “Promise Me, Dad: A Year of Hope, Hardship, and Purpose” in 2017, added the report. The memoir, which detailed the loss of his eldest son, Beau, became a New York Times number one bestseller and spurred his American Promise book tour, widely viewed as a precursor to his 2020 presidential campaign. While maintaining a relatively low profile, the former president has been seen around his Delaware home and continues to keep in touch with former aides and associates. He also recently became a great-grandfather with the birth of his granddaughter Naomi's son, the report also said. Although CAA is typically associated with major movie stars and A-list celebrities, the agency also works with politicians and social advocacy groups. The Obamas have partnered with CAA through their production company, Higher Ground, which has produced award-winning films and television shows, including the Oscar-winning documentary “American Factory”.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced late on Monday that El Salvador’s president has agreed to accept deportees from the U.S., regardless of nationality, including violent American criminals currently incarcerated in the U.S, reports AP. President Nayib Bukele “has agreed to the most unprecedented, extraordinary migratory agreement anywhere in the world,” Rubio stated after several hours of discussions with Bukele at his lakeside residence outside San Salvador. New US Secretary of State Rubio meets Indian External Affairs Minister Jaishankar “We can send them, and he will place them in his prisons,” Rubio said of migrants of all nationalities detained in the U.S. “He has also offered to do the same for dangerous criminals serving sentences in the U.S., even if they are U.S. citizens or legal residents.” Rubio was in El Salvador to urge its government to take further action in response to President Donald Trump's demands for tougher immigration measures. Bukele confirmed the offer on X, saying that El Salvador had “offered the United States of America the opportunity to outsource part of its prison system.” He clarified that the country would only accept “convicted criminals” and would charge a fee that would be “relatively low for the U.S. but significant for us, making our entire prison system sustainable.” Elon Musk, collaborating with Trump on government reform, praised the idea on X: “Great idea!!” After Rubio’s comments, a U.S. official mentioned that the Trump administration currently has no plans to deport American citizens, though the offer from Bukele was seen as significant. Deporting U.S. citizens would face considerable legal obstacles. Marco Rubio confirmed as US secretary of state The U.S. State Department describes El Salvador’s overcrowded prisons as “harsh and dangerous,” noting that many facilities suffer from inadequate sanitation, water, ventilation, temperature control, and lighting. Rubio had just witnessed a U.S.-funded deportation flight carrying 43 migrants from Panama to Colombia. This followed a stern warning from Rubio to Panama that unless it took immediate action to remove Chinese influence at the Panama Canal, the U.S. would intervene. Migration was the primary focus during Rubio's five-nation Central American tour, which also includes Costa Rica, Guatemala, and the Dominican Republic. His visit coincides with significant political turmoil in Washington over the future of the U.S. government’s main foreign development agency. The Trump administration has focused on stopping people from migrating to the U.S., working with regional countries to enhance immigration enforcement and accept deportees from the U.S. The arrangement Rubio described, in which El Salvador accepts foreign nationals detained in the U.S. for immigration violations, is a “safe third country” agreement. Officials suggested this could be an option for Venezuelan gang members convicted of crimes in the U.S., but Rubio stated that Bukele's offer applied to detainees of any nationality. Rubio further explained that Bukele had also proposed accepting and incarcerating U.S. citizens or legal residents convicted of violent crimes. Human rights advocates have expressed concern that El Salvador lacks a consistent policy for asylum seekers and refugees and warned that the agreement might extend beyond violent criminals. Manuel Flores, secretary-general of the leftist opposition party, the Farabundo Martí National Liberation Front, criticized the “safe third country” plan, calling it a signal that the region is merely Washington’s “backyard to dump the garbage.” After meeting with Bukele, Rubio signed a memorandum with his Salvadoran counterpart to advance U.S.-El Salvador civil nuclear cooperation, potentially leading to a more formal agreement on nuclear power and medicine. The deportation flight Rubio witnessed was carrying migrants detained by Panamanian authorities after illegally crossing the Darien Gap from Colombia. The State Department views such deportations as a deterrent, with the U.S. having provided Panama nearly $2.7 million for flights and tickets since the agreement to fund them. Rubio was present as the flight departed, which was taking 32 men and 11 women back to Colombia. It’s uncommon for a Secretary of State to witness such law enforcement operations, especially in front of cameras. “Mass migration is one of the great tragedies of the modern era,” Rubio said afterward. “It impacts countries worldwide. We recognize that many of those who seek mass migration are often victims themselves, and it harms everyone.” This deportation flight coincided with Trump’s threats to penalize countries that do not accept deportation flights from the U.S. He briefly imposed sanctions on Colombia last week after it initially refused two flights, while Panama has been more cooperative, accepting flights of third-country deportees. Rubio's visit occurs during a freeze in U.S. foreign assistance and stop-work orders halting U.S.-funded programs targeting illegal migration and crime in Central America. The State Department confirmed that Rubio had approved waivers for certain critical programs in the countries he’s visiting, though details were not immediately available. While Rubio was abroad, U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) staff were instructed to stay away from the agency’s Washington headquarters following Musk’s announcement that Trump had agreed to shut it down. Thousands of USAID employees have been laid off, and many programs have been discontinued. Rubio told reporters in San Salvador that he was now the acting administrator of USAID but had delegated day-to-day operations. This restructuring means that USAID is no longer an independent agency and will now be run by the State Department, a move likely to be challenged in court. Rubio noted that although some USAID programs would continue, the reorganization was necessary because the agency had become unaccountable to both the executive branch and Congress. Regarding his recent discussion with Panama’s president on the Panama Canal, Rubio expressed hope that the Panamanians would heed his and Trump’s warnings about China. The issue remains sensitive in Panama, which agreed to withdraw from a Chinese infrastructure initiative but has resisted calls for the U.S. to regain control of the canal. Florida s Val Demings launches bid to oust Rubio from Senate “I understand that it’s a delicate issue in Panama,” Rubio told reporters in San Salvador. “We don’t want to have a hostile and negative relationship with Panama. I don’t think we do. We had a frank and respectful conversation, and I hope it will yield results.” Back in Washington, Trump was more forceful, stating: "China’s involvement with the Panama Canal won’t last for long, and that’s how it must be." “We either want it back, or we’ll take very strong actions, or we’ll take it back,” Trump declared. “And China will be dealt with.”

Thousands of people in Southern California protested against the mass deportations planned by President Donald Trump on Sunday, including in downtown Los Angeles, where demonstrators blocked a major freeway for several hours, reports AP> The protesters assembled in the morning at LA's historic Olvera Street, which has ties to Spanish and Mexican heritage, before marching to City Hall. They called for immigration reform and carried banners with messages such as "Nobody is illegal. "Trump's mass deportation plan could overwhelm U.S. Immigrant Detention System By the afternoon, the marchers had blocked all lanes of U.S. 101, causing significant traffic congestion in both directions and on surface streets. The protesters sat down in the lanes, while a line of California Highway Patrol officers observed. It took over five hours for the freeway to fully reopen, according to CHP Lt. Matt Gutierrez. Both the CHP and the Los Angeles Police Department reported no arrests. Elsewhere, hundreds of people gathered in Riverside, where drivers honked and cheered in support of the demonstrators waving flags at an intersection, as reported by the Southern California News Group. In San Diego, hundreds rallied near the city's convention centre on Sunday. Meanwhile, in Texas, demonstrators held protests in downtown Dallas against recent arrests by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Dallas police estimated around 1,600 people attended the two rallies. As Trump returns to the White House, families brace for mass deportations Marchers carried both Mexican and American flags, with speakers voicing their anger at Trump's rhetoric and his administration's actions to increase deportations. One sign read, “Immigrants Make America Great.”